Cardinal Leo's Message for the Month of the Blessed Mother
Message for the Month of the Blessed Mother
1 May 2025
His Eminence Frank Cardinal Leo
Metropolitan Archbishop of Toronto
My Dear Brothers and Sisters in the Lord,
May Jesus and Mary be in your souls.
I am writing to you at the beginning of the month dedicated to the Blessed Mother. When we call Mary “Our Mother” or “Mother Mary”, we simultaneously acknowledge her as the Mother of God, and as our mother. As Mother of God, Mary is the favoured one who bore the Second Person of the Trinity in her heart and in her womb (Lk 1:28-36). As our mother, she is the one given to us by Jesus himself on the Cross as our spiritual mother (Jn 19:25-27). With these three simple words, Our Blessed Mother, we recall both the Annunciation and The Crucifixion. There is an undeniable profundity and simplicity that accompanies authentic Marian spirituality and devotion, that I am inviting you to take up with greater vigour this month.
During this Holy Jubilee Year we have been called to live in hope, finding hope in God and His actions in the world (cf. Spes non Confundit, 7). Pope Francis calls Mother Mary “the supreme witness” to hope. She is the mother who pondered God’s will, who never gave into despair or a sense of abandonment, who looked to the future of eternal bliss, and who selflessly gave herself to the will of God out of love (cf. CCC, 1818). As Mother of Hope, Mary is also Stella Maris, “the sure hope that, amid the tempests of this life, the Mother of God comes to our aid, sustains us and encourages us to persevere in hope and trust” (Spes non Confundit, 24). As the first and most perfect disciple of Our Lord, Mary is the shining “star” in the sea of life. When the waters of this life become rough and threaten to drown us, Mary helps us to navigate this adversity toward her Son the source of our hope, the harbour of salvation.
When we speak about Mary the superlative is always used because she is the example par excellence. “She shows forth the victory of hope over anguish, of fellowship over solitude, of peace over anxiety, of joy and beauty over boredom and disgust, of eternal visions over earthly ones, of life over death” (Marialis Cultus, 57). As Pilgrims of Hope, we root ourselves in Jesus Christ and seek Mary’s intercession.
At the beginning of March, I invited the faithful of the Archdiocese of Toronto to consecrate themselves to Our Blessed Mother on the Solemnity of the Annunciation. This invitation followed the request of Our Holy Father who also asked that all the faithful renew their consecration to the Immaculate Heart of Mary annually on the 25th of March (Pope Francis, General Audience, 22 March 2023). If you missed the opportunity on that Solemnity, the memorial of Our Lady of Fatima (13 May), Mary, Help of Christians (24 May), or the Feast of the Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary (31 May) would be appropriate days to either consecrate yourself to Mother Mary or renew your consecration to her Immaculate Heart. As a communal recognition of our month-long devotion to Our Blessed Mother, on 31 May 2025, A Day with Mary, at Villanova College in King City will be celebrated. This Marian day is family-friendly with planned events and activities for the young and young at heart. I will be presiding over the concelebration of the Eucharist on that day and would like to ask that you please join me. During the month of May we seek the intercession of Our Lady, Mother of Hope, and ask her to help us see with the eyes of faith and devotion: the beauty and splendour of God in our midst and in the world.
Dear Brothers and Sisters, during the entire month of May - the month of Mary - I encourage you to take the time to get to know Our Lady better by reading about her, talking to her, seeking her help and celebrating with us on 31 May.
Finally, I humbly urge all the faithful in the Archdiocese of Toronto, our families and parishes, schools and other faith, religious and ecclesial communities and institutions, to embody certain qualities of Mary’s life and devotion. How do we look to her example and learn to be true and credible believers and witnesses in our families? How do we turn to her and be inspired as our model of unwavering hope at work or at school? How do we emulate that “love beyond all telling” in our communities, which animated her personal life, her vocation, her involvement in her community of faith and her daily living? There is no better role model in living authentically and with passion and devotion the Christian life than the Mother of God, our spiritual mother, our life, our sweetness and our hope.
Blessings upon you in Jesus with Mary!
